GreenCityBlueLake Awards 2006

Each year, EcoCity Cleveland gives out a special set of awards to honor individuals and organizations working to improve the long-term quality of life in Northeast Ohio by balancing environmental quality, social justice, and economic prosperity. This year’s awards were presented at the Great Lakes Burning River Fest on August 12, 2006, at Whiskey Island on Cleveland’s lakefront. In addition to public recognition, the award winners receive an original piece of artwork by a local artist that showcases the beauty of our bioregion. The award this year is a beautiful, framed photograph of Blue Hen Falls in the Cuyahoga Valley by noted Ohio photographer Ian Adams.

Here are the eight GreenCityBlueLake Award categories and winners for 2006 :

Green Building — Bill Doty, for promoting green building and sustainability in Northeast Ohio as a professional architect and volunteer board member of nonprofit organizations. As a principal of Doty & Miller Architects, he has helped numerous clients develop buildings that offer superior performance while respecting the earth. His firm’s offices in the restored Bedford Post Office building are a model of green building and preservation. And he has served the larger community as a board member of the Cleveland Green Building Coalition, Entrepreneurs for Sustainability, Green Energy Ohio, and the Earth Day Coalition.

Award presented in partnership with the Cleveland Green Building Coalition.

Sustainable transportation — Ohio City Bicycle Co-op, for offering practical, hands-on programs to promote effective cycling in Greater Cleveland. The dedicated volunteers of the co-op conduct classes on bike riding and repair, recycle used bikes, provide secure bike parking at community events, and help cultivate the next generation of cyclists with an Earn-a-Bike program for children.

Environmental health — Cleveland Division of Water, for eliminating the use chlorine rail cars and phasing out the use of chlorine for drinking water disinfection. By replacing chlorine with much safer sodium hypochlorite, the Division of Water has dramatically reduced the risk to Cleveland residents and division employees from a toxic chlorine release. Along with the Northeast Ohio Regional Sewer District, the Division of Water has made the Cleveland area a national leader in water treatment safety and security.

Conservation — Western Reserve Land Conservancy, for achieving the largest-ever merger of land trusts in the United States and creating a major new force for land conservation in Northeast Ohio. The new Western Reserve Land Conservancy combines eight, nonprofit land trusts in a 14-county area to more effectively conserve forests, farms, wetlands, and natural areas. It’s a model for regional collaboration.

Sustainable energy — Wind turbine at the Great Lakes Science Center, for creating an inspirational symbol of the promise of sustainable energy. The 225-kilowatt turbine on Cleveland’s lakefront will allow the science center to demonstrate the interrelationships between science, environment and technology. And it will be a beacon of hope for everyone who dreams that clean, renewable energy can contribute to Cleveland’s economic future.

Award presented in partnership with Green Energy Ohio.

Sustainable business — Green Clean, for demonstrating that environmentally friendly services and social responsibility can combine to produce a profitable commercial and residential cleaning company. Green Clean provides superior cleaning without the use of toxic chemicals and trains people about safe cleaning practices. It also pays employees a living wage and is developing a college-assistance program for the children of employees. The company is an inspiration to other entrepreneurs interested in offering eco-friendly products and running sustainable businesses.

Award presented in partnership with Entrepreneurs for Sustainability.

Sustainable food — Cuyahoga Valley Countryside Conservancy, for working to re-envision and rebuild a regional food system in Northeast Ohio — a system purposefully designed to reconnect food in the public’s mind to farming and land, to community, and to nature. The conservancy has rehabilitated and leased small farms in the Cuyahoga Valley National Park, organized farmers’ markets, and provided educational programs and internships to cultivate the “next generation” of farmers. It has started the long process of shifting cultural awareness about how food choices affect personal health, local communities, and the natural world.

Nature in the city — Dike 14 Environmental Education Collaborative, for bringing together volunteers from nine organizations for the common purpose of creating a nature preserve and environmental education center on Dike 14, an 88-acre disposal facility for dredgings on Cleveland’s lakefront. By documenting the site’s important role as refuge for migratory birds, organizing public events to allow people to experience the dike, working with the city to plan future uses, and producing a field guide and other educational materials, the collaborative has built public support for the preservation of this unique habitat on Lake Erie.

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EcoCity Cleveland
3500 Lorain Avenue, Suite 301, Cleveland OH 44113
Cuyahoga Bioregion
(216) 961-5020
www.ecocitycleveland.org
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